Historic Sites

My husband loves history. After doing the beach and maybe snorkeling in Cozumel, the ruins and Mayan experience in Costa Maya, I thought that we would explore the historic sites at Grand Cayman.

Unlike some other communities we have visited, I have not been able to find one that takes you to places of local history. Self guided tours seem to be recommended. Does anyone have suggestions as to where I can get information about how to plan our route?

The Cayman Islands National Museum is at 3 Harbour Drive on the waterfront in George Town and an easy walk from the cruise tender docks. Housed in the Old Courts Building, the museum is the oldest surviving public building in Cayman.

Nearby and just south of the museum is an old step well that was uncovered when building a shopping mall. The step well is located in a shop to the rear of Bayshore Mall The well is visible through a glass inset in the floor of one of the shops.

Another downtown historic treasure is Elmslie Memorial Church located at 48 Harbour Dr. Shipwrights used their knowledge of boat building to construct an impressive roof that is essentially a ship's hull turned upside down, beautiful indeed.

Further afield is Pedro St James historic site, the location of Cayman's first capital. The Great House has been restored to reflect how the house was in the 1700s. You'll probably need a rental car as cruise ship tours are relatively rare. Also known locally as Pedro Castle, the site is a 15-20 minute drive from George Town.

Cayman, unlike most Caribbean islands, was not inhabited prior to arrival of European settlers. As such there are no pre-historic ruins to explore. But Cayman does have a few of the historic pints of interest as mentioned above.

Yes, thank you. I have been reading about those places. I think that is what my husband is interested in. I have been reading up on them on an online magazine. I have reserved a Cayman travel guide at the library and may purchase one so that we have directions and information when we get there. We are not "smartphone" people so we still need real books.

We have been to Pedro St. James Historical Site a couple of different times. We really enjoy it. One of the tour guides we met there is a descendent of the original owners. The Bodden House has also been moved to the site. They were another one of the original settler families on the island. The entry price to the site is quite reasonable and the gift shop has some very nice items at incredibly reasonable prices too.

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll put it on our list. The information I have read says that taxis and buses are easy ways to get around and that some places are within walking distance. Friends that went had to tender on the other side of the island, but were easily able to taxi to Pedro St. James.

You could take a public bus. Nearest stop is by the intersection of Shamrock Rd and Pedro Castle Rd. You can usually pay and extra CI$1 per person to have the bus divert from its route. That could get you to Pedro St James. Better to call for a taxi for the ride back to town as it would be a walk of a mile or so back to the bus route.

Lunch may be a bit of an issue. There has bee of-and-on discussions to have a vender provide food service at the site. Not sure of the exact current status. If you go with a rental car then there are easy options not far, just back on Shamrock Rd, either at the Wendy's or a Subway and Chinese restaurant are in Countryside Shopping Centre.

We don't get to Grand Cayman till 11:30. I understand that if you do not have tour to catch you do not get priority on the tenders. We might just eat a snack on the ship.